A round-up of today's other stories in brief.
At least nine die in east US flooding
PHILADELPHIA - The worst flooding in the eastern United States for decades, triggered by days of torrential downpours, has killed at least nine people and forced thousands to flee their homes.
With roads washed out and waters rising, authorities yesterday declared emergencies across large swathes of New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. - (Reuters)
US ruling on Vienna treaty
WASHINGTON - A divided US Supreme Court has ruled that failure to tell foreigners of their right to contact their consulate when arrested should not result in throwing out anything they say to police.
The important 6-3 ruling said foreigners were not entitled to any relief in US courts for violations of the international treaty in question, the Vienna Convention.- (Reuters)
French PM will not run for president
PARIS - French prime minister Dominique de Villepin said yesterday he had no plans to stand in next year's presidential election, preferring instead to concentrate on running the government.- (Reuters)
1 dead, 81 injured in building collapse
KINSHASA - At least one person was killed and 81 injured when a building collapsed at a political rally in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo yesterday just ahead of President Joseph Kabila's arrival, a UN source said.
Mr Kabila's supporters were dancing on top of the building in the town of Goma in North-Kivu province, awaiting the president, when the structure collapsed, the source said. - (Reuters)
Half of car gases produced in US
LOS ANGELES - American cars and pickup trucks are responsible for nearly half of the greenhouse gases emitted by automobiles globally, even though US vehicles make up just 30 per cent of the nearly 700 million cars in use, according to a new report by the US group Environmental Defence. - (LA Times- Washington Post)